The National Fire Heritage Center (NFHC) is pleased to announce the creation of the Benjamin Franklin Fire Writer’s Award. The award program was created in recognition of Franklin’s unique combination of being a writer/publisher and an advocate for community fire protection. Credited with the creation of one of the first fire companies in 1736 in Philadelphia, Franklin went on to become one of our nation’s treasures as a thinker, writer and publisher of international repute.
According to NFHC President Ron Coleman, this award program is aimed at recognizing those writers, journalists, publishers and printers who have made significant contributions to the sharing of knowledge about society’s fire problem.
Awards will be given in multiple categories:
- Best fictional novel with fire, firefighter or fire related professional solving problems
- Best non-fiction book that addresses history, apparatus, fires, firefighters, fire professionals, fire technology or other aspects of the fire profession that is factual as opposed to fictional
- Best biography of person who had served in any position involving fire protection disciplines
- Best autobiography of person had served in any position involving fire protection disciplines
- Best single newspaper article addressing a local, regional, state or national fire protection issue
- Best magazine/newspaper article series addressing a local, regional, state or national fire protection issue
- Best media presentation addressing a major fire prevention issue at the local, state, national or international level
First-place winners in each category will receive a fire helmet frontispiece that reflects Franklin’s legacy in the United States. Awards will be given for first, second and third places.
To submit material for consideration, download the attached application PDF or visit www.nationalfireheritagecenter.org to download the application form there. Entries should be submitted to the National Fire Heritage Center at P.O. Drawer/P.O. Box 76, Emmitsburg, Md. 21727.
The first award recipients will be recognized at the NFHC’s annual board of directors meeting conducted in October in conjunction with the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Weekend at the National Fire Academy.
Fee: The application fee is $17.36 USD for each individual entry.
Eligibility Period: Applicants can submit work published between Sept. 11, 2001, and April 17, 2012.
E-mail questions to ron@fireforceone.com.
